Finding Guidence and Advising Others When Standing At Life's Crossroads

December 27, 2004

by David B. South

David B. South,
President of the Monolithic Dome Institute

As I move through life I often think about "what might have been." For many years my favorite poem has been The Road not Taken by Robert Frost. Very often we come to crossroads in our lives, sometimes on a daily basis, and I have always thought about this poem when making crucial decisions.

The Road not Taken

by Robert Frost

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I--
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

I have found myself at a fork in the road many, many times. I have had to study the situation, look down both paths as far as I could and then try my best to make a wise decision as to which path to follow. All the while knowing no matter what, I would never be back at that crossroad again. Once the decision is made and you start down a path, you can retrace your steps and very often you have to. But you will never be at that same crossroads under the same circumstances again.

Recently, I have come upon another poem I like even better:

The Upward Reach

By Sadie Tiller Crawley

He stood at the crossroads all alone,
The sunlight in his face;
He had no thought for an evil course
He was set for a manly race.
But the road stretched east, and the road stretched west,
And he did not know which road was best;
So he took the wrong road and it led him down,
And he lost the race and the victor's crown,
He was caught at last in an angry snare;
Because no one stood at the crossroads there,
To show him the better road.

Another day, at the selfsame place,
A boy with high hopes stood;
He, too, was set for a manly race --
He was seeking the things that were good.
And one was there who the roads did know,
And that one showed him the way to go;
So he turned away from the road leading down,
And he won the race and the victor's crown;
He walks today the highway fair
Because one stood at the crossroads there,
To show him the better road.

Do you see the difference in the two poems? Here, the candidate at the crossroad has the benefit of someone who has been down the roads before him to offer advice. That advice can make all the difference. It is wise to seek out that advice. It may come to you in a discussion with a friend or as simple advice you read in a magazine or a book.

No one has the time to try every fork in the road. It is just not possible. For instance, one who has never taken drugs can never feel the terror that comes from trying to get off drugs. The advice from our friends, parents, business associates, mentors, and those that have gone down these various roads before us, are absolutely invaluable and can save us from a hurt, danger and heartache.

It is shear folly to encourage your children, friends, or those that follow to blindly pick a path by looking down through the underbrush to see which has been more heavily utilized. We make enough trips down the wrong paths when attempting to make correct decisions, we don't need to randomize decisions. It is incumbent on us to stand at the crossroads and help direct the foot steps of those who follow. It is equally important for us to seek out advice from those who have traveled the paths ahead of us.

Finding Guidence and Advising Others When Standing At Life's Crossroads

The Road not Taken

The Upward Reach

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